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Ballot Box Bunny
Ballot Box Bunny is a 1950 animated Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon short released in 1951, directed by Friz Freleng and written by Warren Foster. Plot Yosemite Sam is running for mayor of a small town saying "There's enough fresh air and sunshine in this great country of ours for everybody- and I'll see to it, that you'll get your share!"). Bugs Bunny is underneath the podium drinking carrot juice when Sam makes a pledge to make good on his previous promise to rid the town "of every last rabbit" if elected. Bugs then decides he needs to fight against Sam by running against him for mayor. Bugs proceeds to quickly try and win the townspeople over (including referencing Theodore Roosevelt's famous "I speak softly, but carry a BIG stick!" quote). However, Sam, declaring that he speaks loud and carries "a bigger stick, and I use it too!" has more than a few tricks up his sleeve. He steals Bugs' cigar stand, sends a boxful of army ants to steal all of Bugs' food, and rigs explosives (in, for instance, a piano and by the front door of Bugs' campaign office), all of which backfire on him. A campaign slogan seen on a pro-Bugs banner says that the candidate is "Loyal, Lovable, Literate." (Bugs switches his "SMELLO" cigars with five-cent ATOM Explosive Cigars {"You Will Get A BANG Out Of This"}, hides a dynamite stick in a watermelon, pretends that a pretty girl called Emma who loves Sam is at his door, and misplays the piano tune on purpose to infuriate Sam, who plays it right and falls for his trap for the fourth time.) In the end, because they were too busy fighting with each other, they don't notice until it is too late that the mayorship has been won by a literal "dark horse" candidate: a chestnut-coloured mare! The two then play a game of Russian Roulette. Bugs shoots himself, but misses and Sam get shot in the head, leaving Sam angry and saying "I hate that rabbit!" (see "Censorship" note below for more information about the ending). Trivia * The "Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms" explosive piano gag would later be reused in Show Biz Bugs (1957) and Rushing Roulette (1965). * The "dark horse" election as the new mayor is a pun joke; The term of "dark horse" refers to one who receives unexpected support as a candidate for the nomination in a political convention. * Unlike most cartoons, Bugs drinks carrot juice instead of munching on a carrot. Goofs When Bugs plays 2 distinctly different sour notes each time, he is striking the exact same key. Censorship *On the syndicated Merrie Melodies Show, FOX, ABC, and The WB the entire ending scene where Bugs and Sam play Russian Roulette after both losing the mayoral race to a literal "dark horse" is deleted with a fake iris-out http://looney.goldenagecartoons.com/ltcuts/b *Cartoon Network and Boomerang originally aired the short with the ending cut the same way as for The Merrie Melodies Show, FOX, ABC, and The WB. As of 2011, the short has been shown uncut on both Cartoon Network and Boomerang. ** It should be noted that the censored version airing on CN/Boomerang USA is a horribly faded unrestored print from the Golden Jubilee tapes time-compressed to PAL speed, while the uncensored version airing on CN/Boomerang USA since 2011 is the restored version seen on Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 played at its original NTSC speed. Meanwhile various European CN/Boomerang stations would air this short uncut, either as the aforementioned Golden Jubilee tape print in PAL speed and high-pitched audio or the 1998 dubbed version (a.k.a. THIS VERSION 1998) print in PAL speed but with normal-pitched audio. *In addition to the cut made by Merrie Melodies, FOX, ABC, The WB, and the pre-2011 Cartoon Network and Boomerang, the part when Bugs plays his "jukeybox", or marches while playing the instruments in his one-man band cuts to Sam saying, "Now where was I?" to remove two shots (one when Sam yells, "Shut off that jukeybox! I can't hear myself a-speechin'!", then shoots at Bugs, and another shot when Bugs has his left foot shot a hole) when shown on Nickelodeon. Gallery Pub-Ballot-Box.GIF|Lobby Card 1 Pub-Ballot-Box-alternate.jpg|Lobby Card 2, Signed by Friz Freleng! Oscar-nom-1951.jpg File:Bbb russian roulette.png|Bugs and Sam play "russian roulette" in this often-censored ending. File:Bbb sam speech.png|Sam giving his election speech. File:Bbb bugs bunny vote.png|Bugs seeks revenge on Sam for his plans on rabbit genocide if elected by running against him for mayor. Availability *Laserdisc - Bugs Bunny: Winner by a Hare: 14 of Bugs Bunny's Best *VHS - A Salute To Mel Blanc *VHS - From Hare to Eternity *DVD - Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1, Disc One External links *Ballot Box Bunny at SuperCartoons.net *Ballot Box Bunny at B99.TV * also see the List of Bugs Bunny cartoons Category:Bugs Bunny Cartoons Category:Yosemite Sam Cartoons Category:Shorts Category:1951 Category:Looney Tunes Shorts Category:Merrie Melodies Shorts Category:Cartoons directed by Friz Freleng Category:Blue Ribbon reissues Category:Bugs Bunny Friz Freleng Category:Cartoons written by Warren Foster Category:Cartoons animated by Ken Champin Category:Cartoons animated by Virgil Ross Category:Cartoons animated by Arthur Davis Category:Cartoons animated by Manuel Perez Category:Cartoons with layouts by Hawley Pratt Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Paul Julian Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling Category:Cartoons with film editing by Treg Brown Category:Cartoons with sound effects edited by Treg Brown Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer